The Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos addressed the attendees of the International Mining and Petroleum Conference in Cartagena on Wednesday calling a responsible and sustainable mining and oil industry “the main financier of the transformation in Colombia,” but avoided some of the sensitive topics industry leaders and investors wanted to hear.
The Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MinAmbiente) signed an agreement with two institutes in order to further the study and mapping of moorlands and wetlands affected by the La Niña weather phenomenon.
Criticism stemming from a press report last week that Oleoductos de los Llanos Orientales (ODL) had allegedly sought to advance the Araguaney Carmentea pipeline project behind closed doors and without community participation prompted the company to respond to Prensa Libre Casanare.
The Center for Analysis and Public Affairs (CAAP) has presented its first ranking of how well departments are managing royalties –whether direct, indirect, regional compensation, or for science/innovation- as a tool for the public debate surrounding the use of these funds.
Colombian Senator Maritza Martínez Aristizábal has questioned the relationship and awarding of contracts between the state and Canadian oil and gas company Pacific Rubiales ahead of senate discussions surrounding a contract with Ecopetrol set to expire in 2016.
The Quifa/Pacific Rubiales/Ecopetrol story never dies! Now the Comptroller General (a kind of Auditor General) weighs in on the March 13, 2012 ruling to emphasize the difference in current WTI prices versus the historic prices, and therefore the Colombian state risks losing US$13M.From a Comptroller General press release, translated and with commentary by Hydrocarbons Colombia
Javier Gutierrez, president of Ecopetrol, made a visit along with company directors to inspect the progress of the Bicentenario Pipeline in the departments of Casanare and Arauca, saying it’s “weeks” from being operational.
Presidents of the community action boards of Tauramena and Villanueva, two villages that fall within the influence area of the “Llanos 32-34 and 3D Max” seismic exploration program, attended a meeting with the companies to define agreements surrounding social investment, wage, transport and monitoring.
As part of the 26th annual Bogota International Book Fair, the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MADS) unveiled the book “Environmental Conflicts in Colombia”, in order to help develop the know-how of environmental authorities in the treatment and resolution of environmental conflicts in the country.
Ecopetrol has kicked off its third National Call to Biodiversity, and is on the lookout to invest US$2.2M in conservation projects that focus on the tropical dry forest. From an Ecopetrol press release, translated and with commentary by Hydrocarbons Colombia.